Pagan speaks while educators need help

The recent activity on Pagan is really a wake-up call and clearly demonstrates the need to seriously consider my previous admonishment that “we should move expeditiously on the Pagan mining and to hope the opportunity for mining on Pagan will be a possibility.” Pagan is active and we can’t do anything with it and we should be glad that any mining company is willing to take the risk, given the activity and the warnings of it being unsafe. With 3.5 million being set aside for the 20 families living there, I’m sure they will better off and live better with $175,000 per family to reestablish themselves, especially when it may not ever be really safe to live permanently on Pagan.

We are already in dire need of the additional money that Azmar will generate, especially for the education system. PSS has constantly cut cost for the past five years just to stay afloat. We used to have nurses at all the schools, we used to have one coordinator for each core subject, we used to get all the textbooks and workbooks that were needed, we used to have enough classrooms and supplies and the list goes on and on. Our children are paying the ultimate cost but the only people that really see this are the teachers and staff who face our children on a daily basis. The recent headlines on the front page said there were “no hitches on first school day.” Maybe not the first day, but we have 179 more days to go after the first day, with limited and, in some cases, no supplies or resources.

I’m writing this letter because on my first day of school I was given one blue pen, one red pen, one white board marker and a grade book. This all I received from the list of things that I requested and I’m sure similar scenarios took place at all schools. My students have to share textbooks and no students in the CNMI will have a workbook to complement their textbook. I’m just praying that we can at least make copies of handouts that we have to make up and other activities to help our students maximize their educational experience. Teaching under these conditions is not in the best interest of our children but what can a teacher do but try to do their best with what they have. Sometimes, though, even our best is not good enough, when we don’t have the proper tools to do the job. Luckily, some teachers are going above and beyond what is required of them and are purchasing some of the things they need. These teachers should save their receipts and apply for a refund under the Governor’s Educational Initiative. Check with your school level Teacher Rep. or the Governor’s Office.

I’m sure we all know the consequences of developing or building anything with substandard materials and poor reinforcement. They don’t function well or last long. This is the phenomenon taking place in the classrooms of our school system. If it takes a village to raise a child, then what do you think it takes to have a fully functional education system? Yes, money and we need all that Azmar and any other new industry can bring if we really want a brighter future for our children. I just hope they will expedite the permit so we can begin seeing these revenues. Is it really right for parents to pass on a $100 million debt to their children? Well, that’s what we are doing to the students of today and the debt will double if we don’t start doing something now to change our continuous economic decline. One people, one direction.

Ambrose Bennett
BOE Teacher Rep.